Book Releases: 2022 Books With Non-Cis Protagonists

It’s the fourth year in a row of me making a list of trans & nonbinary books, so I’m lowkey hopeful we all know the drill by now. The post itself is titled “non-cis books” to make sure it’s true for all the books included in it (especially novels with Indigenous gender identities, or simply sci-fi ones with no labels). And also because that’s what I used in my first post…

This post only allows rep in the form of a main character, a love interest, or a truly major side character (usually a parent or someone like that). So you can be sure it’s not small or insignificant.

If you know of any books I’ve missed or caught any mistakes I’ve made, please leave a comment! And as always, books by LGBT authors have a rainbow emoji next to the title.

Also, a lot of those titles are available on Scribd, so if you want to check out that service but don’t have an account yet, use my invite code to get 2 months for free! (This also gives me one free month.)

Related: trans books of 2021, trans books of 2020 and trans books of 2019

🌈 One Verse Multi by Sander Santiago (trans mc, achillean relationship, polyamory)
🌈 In a Heartbeat by Markus Harwood-Jones (trans mc)
Where Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire (trans mc, lgbt side characters)
🌈 Cinder the Fireplace Boy and other Gayly Grimm Tales by Ana Mardoll (trans & nonbinary mcs)
The Swells by Will Aitken (sapphic mc, trans li)

🌈 Tiger Honor by Yoon Ha Lee (Korean coded nonbinary mc)
🌈 Welcome to the Show by Jules Kelley (genderqueer mc, bi mc, m/m/m relationship, nonbinary character)
🌈 Love & Other Disasters by Anita Kelly (pan nonbinary mc, sapphic mc, f/nb relationship)
🌈 Winter’s Dawn by Arden Powell (nonbinary mc, m/nb relationship)
🌈 At the End of Everything by Marieke Nijkamp (nonbinary mc)

🌈 Rebel Boys and Rescue Dogs, or Things That Kiss with Teeth by Brianna R. Shrum (trans li)
🌈 Survivor’s Guilt by Robyn Gigl (trans mc)
Manywhere by Morgan Thomas (trans mc, genderqueer characters, lgb characters)
🌈 All the White Spaces by Ally Wilkes (trans mc)
It’s a Hit! by Arin Cole Barth & Marika Barth (trans mc, lgbt side characters)

The Light of You by Trystan Reese, Biff Chaplow & Van Binfa (trans dad, m/m relationship)
The Magic Shell by Jillian Christmas & Diana G. A. Mungaray (Black nonbinary mc)
Noodin’s Perfect Day by Ansley Simpson & Rhael McGregor (nonbinary mc)
Base Notes by Lara Elena Donnelly (pan nonbinary mc)

🌈 Real Hero Shit by Kendra Wells (pan polyam mc, poc nonbinary mc, gay mc)
🌈 Magical Boy by The Kao (trans mc, lesbian side characters, gay side character)
🌈 Three Left Turns to Nowhere by J. Marshall Freeman, ‘Nathan Burgoine, Jeffrey Ricker (trans mc, m/m relationship)
The Gifts That Bind Us by Caroline O’Donoghue (sapphic mc, bi genderfluid li, biracial Filipino Irish sapphic side character) tw transphobia, homophobia, self harm
🌈 Across a Field of Starlight by Blue Delliquanti (nonbinary mcs)

🌈 Bitter by Akwaeke Emezi (Black trans mc with selective mutism)
🌈 The Ooze by Tash McAdam (trans mc)
🌈 Dead Collections by Isaac Fellman (trans mc, sapphic li)
🌈 Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin (trans mcs)
City of Deceit by Claudie Arseneault (trans & nonbinary characters, lgbt cast)

The Turning Pointe by Vanessa L. Torres (bi genderqueer li)
🌈 Silver-Lined Secrets by Aleksander Petit (gay mc, trans gay li, achillean character) tw blood, violence, death, kidnapping, transphobia, ableism, vomiting, panic attacks
🌈 And They Lived… by Steven Salvatore (nonbinary mc, nb/m relationship) tw outing, homophobia, fatphobia, gaslighting, disordered eating & purging (graphic), suicidal ideation
🌈 The One True Me and You by Remi K. England (nonbinary mc, nb/f relationship)
The Savior’s Rise by Talli Morgan (nonbinary bi mc, gay demi mc, nb/m relationship, pan aro mc, pan genderqueer mc)

🌈 At Certain Points We Touch by Lauren John Joseph (trans mc)
Cakewalk by Douglas Bell (trans li)
🌈 The Best Liars in Riverview by Lin Thompson (nonbinary mc)
🌈 Lakelore by Anna-Marie McLemore (Latine nonbinary mcs)
🌈 A Million Quiet Revolutions by Robin Gow (achillean trans mcs)

My Volcano by John Elizabeth Stintzi (trans mc)
🌈 Glorious by Cameron James (trans mc, bi mc, polyam relationship)
🌈 Dreams Bigger Than Heartbreak by Charlie Jane Anders (bi/pan mc, Black Brazilian trans female bi/pan mc, nonbinary characters)
🌈 Alice Austen Lived Here by Alex Gino (nonbinary mcs)

🌈 Beatnikki’s Cafe by Renee James (trans mc)
🌈 Little Foxes Took Up Matches by Katya Kazbek (nonbinary mc)
Rabbit Chase by Elizabeth LaPensée & KC Oster (Anishinaabe nonbinary mc)
🌈 This Rebel Heart by Katherine Locke (genderqueer mc, polyam relationship)
🌈 Different Kinds of Fruit by Kyle Lukoff (trans parent)

🌈 The Secrets of the Stormforest by L.D. Lapinski (lesbian mc, trans mc)
All the Shining People by Kathy Friedman (trans mc)
🌈 Dead End Girls by Wendy Heard (lesbian mc, nonbinary sapphic mc, f/f relationship) tw child abuse, death, lesbophobia
My Shadow is Purple by Scott Stuart (nonbinary mc)
🌈 Barnabas Bopwright Saves the City by J. Marshall Freeman (bi mc, trans character, same-sex parents, lgbt side characters)

🌈 The Honeys by Ryan La Sala (achillean genderfluid mc, lesbian & gay side characters)
🌈 Chef’s Kiss by T. J. Alexander (bi mc, nonbinary li, f/nb relationship)
The Third Person by Emma Grove (trans mc)
🌈 Moonflower by Kacen Callender (nonbinary mc)
The Many Half-Lived Lives of Sam Sylvester by Maya MacGregor (nonbinary pan ace autistic mc)

🌈 Bad Girls by Camila Villada, trans. by Kit Maude (trans mc)
🌈 Kisses for Jet by Joris Bas Backer (trans mc)
🌈 The One Who Loves You the Most by medina (nonbinary mc)
🌈 The Torn Earth by Rory Michaelson (lesbian mc, gay mc, trans mc)
Twelfth by Janet Key (f/nb relationship)

🌈 Galaxy: The Prettiest Star by Jadzia Axelrod & Jess Taylor (trans mc)
🌈 All the Things We Don’t Talk About by Amy Feltman (nonbinary mc, bi parent, side f/f relationship)
The Origin of Storms by Elizabeth Bear (trans mc, bi mc)
🌈 Fight + Flight by Jules Machias (gay mc, gay trans mother)
🌈 A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall (trans mc, f/m relationship)

🌈 The Fae Keeper by H. E. Edgmon (trans gay mc, Black achillean li, Native American bi ace side character, lgbt side characters)
🌈 Out of the Blue by Jason June (genderqueer mc, gay mc, gq/m relationship)
🌈 Man O’War by Cory McCarthy (trans mc)
🌈 Rainbow Rainbow by Lydia Conklin (lgbt short stories; trans & gnc characters)
Adrift in Starlight by Mindi Briar (nonbinary mc, ace mc)

🌈 Going to Beautiful by Anthony Bidulka (trans mc, gay mc)
🌈 Heckin’ Lewd ed. by Mx. Nillin Lore (trans mcs, nonbinary mcs)
🌈 Nevada by Imogen Binnie (trans sapphic mc, trans side character; reprint)
Kapaemahu by Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu, Dean Hamer, Joe Wilson, Daniel Sousa (mahu mcs/third gender mcs)
🌈 Wrath Goddess Sing by Maya Deane (trans mc, bi characters, f/m relationship, m/m relationship)

🌈 Out There ed. by Saundra Mitchell (lgbt stories; Indigineous trans gay mc, trans gay mc, nonbinary mc, nonbinary aro mc, Indian trans mc, trans lesbian mc, Black nonbinary mc)
🌈 Hell Followed with Us by Andrew Joseph White (trans mc, lgbt characters)
🌈 Odder Still by D. N. Bryn (trans pan li, m/m relationship)
He’s Back by Alex Clare (trans mc)
X by Davey Davis (nonbinary mc)

🌈 Timid by Harry Woodgate (nonbinary mc with anxiety)
🌈 A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers (nonbinary mc)
What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher (nonbinary mc)
Beating Heart Baby by Lio Min (Japanese-Korean trans mc, pan mc, m/m relationship, nonbinary, sapphic & lesbian characters)
🌈 The Feeling of Falling in Love by Mason Deaver (trans mc, nonbinary li, m/nb relationship)

Blood Like Fate by Liselle Sambury (trans Mexican Canadian li, trans Trinidadian Canadian character, demi lesbian Trinidadian Canadian character)
🌈 The Bruising of Qilwa by Naseem Jamnia (trans nonbinary aroace mc, agender mc, transmasc side character)
🌈 The Last Hero by Linden A. Lewis (pan nonbinary mc, gay ace mc, bi mc)
🌈 The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas (Latine cast, trans gay mc, m/m relationship, sapphic, achillean & nonbinary characters) tw bullying, violence, death, attempted ritual murder, blood, fire, classism
🌈 Self Made Boys by Anna-Marie McLemore (Mexican American trans achillean mc, trans achillean li, lesbian Latina character)

🌈 The Unbalancing by R. B. Lemberg (nonbinary characters)
🌈 The Genesis of Misery by Neon Yang (nonbinary mc)
The Heartbreak Handshake by J. R. Hart (nonbinary mc)
🌈 The Nightland Express by J.M. Lee (trans genderfluid mc, achillean mixed race mc)
🌈 Into the Riverlands by Nghi Vo (nonbinary mc, sapphic mc)

🌈 Pumpkin Spice by Cameron James (nonbinary mc, polyam relationship)
🌈 At Midnight ed. by Dahlia Adler (lgbt short stories; trans mcs)
🌈 Sir Callie and the Champions of Helston by Esme Symes-Smith (nonbinary mc, achillean parents)
🌈 Acting the Part by Z. R. Ellor (transmasc nonbinary mc)
Call Me Cassandra by Marcial Gala, trans. by Anna Kushner (gnc mc)

Alex Priest, vol. 1 by Jordaan Arledge (genderqueer ace mc, bi li)
🌈 Boys Weekend by Matt Lubchansky (trans mc)
🌈 If I Can Give You That by Michael Gray Bulla (trans gay mc, m/m relationship)
🌈 Infect Your Friends and Loved Ones by Torrey Peters (short stories; trans mcs; reprint)
🌈 The Story of the Hundred Promises by Neil Cochrane (trans mc)

🌈 Lark & Kasim Start a Revolution by Kacen Callender (Black nonbinary neurodivergent mc, Black trans li, Black lgbt characters)
🌈 Not He or She, I’m Me by A.M. Wild & Kah Yangni (nonbinary mc)
🌈 Payden’s Pronoun Party by Blue Jaryn & Xochitl Cornejo (nonbinary mc)
Pretend It’s My Body by Luke Dani Blue (short stories; trans characters)
Sanctuary by Andi C. Buchanan (nonbinary mc, sapphic li)

Storm’s Fury by Lani Wendt Young (faafafine mc)
Untitled (The Accursed Vampire sequel) by Madeline McGrane (nonbinary mc)
🌈 The Two Doctors Górski by Isaac Fellman (trans mc)
True You by Shelley Rotner & Gwen Agna (picture book for trans kids)
🌈 Untitled by Jen Breach (nonbinary mc)

🌈 Cryptid Sweethearts Series by Eli Wray (trans mcs)
How to Love a Dragon by Lila Mina (pan female mc, genderfluid li)
🌈 When Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb (genderless mc, sapphic characters, f/f relationship)
Warrior Of Hearts by Beau Van Dalen (trans achillean mc, m/m relationship)
🌈 Wolfpack by Rem Wigmore (bi trans mc, trans characters)

🌈 Elixir: Stories of Hope and Healing ed. by Elizabeth Jeannel (lgbt cast)
🌈 Game On ed. by Laura Silverman (lgbt cast)
One Brave Thing by Lauren Edwards (genderqueer mc)
Big Wig by Jonathan Hillman & Levi Hastings (nonbinary mc)
I Am Everything in Between by Sydney Sunderland (nonbinary mc)

Call Me Nathan by Catherine Castro & Quentin Zuttion, trans. by Evan McGorray (trans mc)
The Moonday Letters by Emmi Itäranta (nonbinary li, f/nb relationship)
🌈 The Vanquishers by Kalynn Bayron (nonbinary mc)
🌈 Tasting Light ed. by A.R. Capetta & Wade Roush (short stories; nonbinary mc)
To Strip the Flesh by Oto Toda (trans mc)

Like & Subscribe for Murder by Elle Kleos (nonbinary mc)
🌈 Me and My Dysphoria Monster by Laura Kate Dale (trans mc)
🌈 The Forgotten Dead by Jordan L. Hawk (trans mc, m/m relationship)
Saint Death’s Daughter by C. S. E. Cooney (nonbinary li)
By Pain of Death by Suzanne Clay (queer trans mc, m/m relationship)

Twelve Percent Dread by Emily McGovern (nonbinary mc, past f/nb relationship)
My Name Is Magic by Xan van Rooyen (nonbinary mc)
🌈 Your Mind is a Terrible Thing by Hailey Piper (nonbinary mc)
Hummingbird by T. C. Parker (trans mc)
Aces Wild by Amanda DeWitt (ace cast, nonbinary li, m/nb relationship, sapphic side character)

Funeral Girl by Emma K. Ohland (nonbinary character)
A Costume for Charly by C.K. Malone & Alejandra Barajas (bigender mc)
Undercover in Paradise by John Patrick (trans gay mc, m/m relationship)
Three by Valérie Perrin, trans. by Hildegarde Serie (trans mc)
🌈 Wish Upon a Satellite by Sophie Labelle (trans nonbinary mc)

Polluted Sex by Lauren Foley (trans & nonbinary mcs)
The Ballad of Perilous Graves by Alex Jennings (trans mc)
🌈 Crush by L. Dreamer (trans mc, m/f)
🌈 Grayality by Carey P.W. (achillean trans mc)
🌈 August Kitko and the Mechas from Space by Alex White (achillean mc, genderqueer li, m/gq)

🌈 Nightstrider by Sophia Slade (bi mc, lesbian mc, transmasc pan mc, gay mc, sapphic mc)
🌈 Welcome to Dorley Hall by Alyson Greaves (trans mc)
Blackwater by Jeannette Arroyo & Ren Graham (Black Puerto Rican bi mc, trans achillean chronically ill mc, m/m relationship)
🌈 Witchy, Volume 2 by Ariel Slamet Ries (trans characters)
🌈 Scout is Not a Band Kid by Jade Armstrong (nonbinary characters)

Didn’t Nobody Give a Shit What Happened to Carlotta by James Hannaham (Black trans mc)
The Bottled Gods by M. J. Fitzmaurice (lesbian mc, trans mc)
The Witches of Moonshyne Manor by Bianca Marais (bi mc, trans mc)
🌈 Transistor by Molly J. Bragg (sapphic trans mc, f/f)
🌈 Listen: The Sound of Fear ed. by Elizabetta McKay (trans & nonbinary characters)

🌈 Something Great by Jeanette Bradley (nonbinary mc)
The Call-Out by Cat Fitzpatrick (sapphic & trans mcs)
Dirt-Stained Hands, Thorn-Pierced Skin by Tabitha O’Connell (nonbinary mc)
🌈 The Sacrifice by Rin Chupeco (Filipino nonbinary mc, bi/pan li, nb/m)
🌈 It Took Luke: Overworked Underpaid by Mark Bouchard & Bayleigh Underwood (nonbinary mc)

🌈 The Scratch Daughters by H. A. Clarke (nonbinary butch lesbian mc, Black sapphic character, Chinese American bi character, femme lesbian character, achillean nonbinary side character, achillean side characters)
🌈 A House Unsettled by Trynne Delaney (f/nb)
🌈 A Sovereign’s Rebellion by Luke W. Logan (trans mc)

Please note: this list previously included a book by A. J. Sass. However, on learning that Sass plans to partake in a trip to Isr*el, thus legitimising an apartheid state, we have elected to remove the book from the post. We do not feel we can support someone who disregards Palestinian lives in such a manner.

Please note: we have removed titles by Freydís Moon after on discovering they’re a pseudonym for Taylor B. Barton/Taylor Brooke who was accused of racism, bullying, & pretending to be Latine a few years back.

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